MEXICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Adrián Magallanes, Diego Sierra and Rodrigo Barradas Muñiz, Von Wobeser y Sierra, SC
1. General 1.1 General Characteristics of the Legal System Mexico has a civil law legal system and is a feder- al state. For historical reasons, it has taken some influence from the US legal system, especially in matters related to constitutional law. Proceed- ings before Mexican courts traditionally followed an inquisitorial model, based mainly on written submissions, but influence from common law systems has become more notable of late; for example, in 2014 the Supreme Court introduced a particular notion of punitive damages, and in 2011 Congress amended the Federal Code of Civil Procedure to allow collective actions. The inquisitorial model is also becoming a thing of the past, since Congress has passed sev- eral amendments to the procedural codes to establish adversarial proceedings conducted through both written submissions and oral argu- ment, with an emphasis on the oral part of the proceedings. This new type of proceedings is already applied to criminal matters and, as of 2020, to most commercial disputes. This model has also been replicated in several states for civil disputes. 1.2 Court System Mexico is a federal state and therefore the court system is made up of federal and local courts. The federal court system has four tiers: • district courts, which hear commercial cases, insolvency cases, civil cases with a federal element, and collective actions, and also act as trial courts for amparo proceedings; • collegiate courts of appeal, which are courts of appeal and also have jurisdiction to hear amparo proceedings;
• collegiate circuit courts, which hear amparo complaints and act as courts of appeal for indirect amparo claims; and • the Supreme Court of Justice, which has jurisdiction to hear direct amparo proceed- ings under certain circumstances, as well as particularly important and relevant cases. The states’ judicial systems are usually two- tiered, with first instance courts and appellate collegiate courts. However, amparo challenges can be submitted against judgments issued by the appellate courts. Federal courts have jurisdiction over commercial disputes, but the claimant can choose to file a claim in either a federal or a state court in cases dealing only with private interest. Courts are organised by subject matter juris- diction. It depends on the number of cases in each circuit or state, but there are usually civil/ commercial courts, administrative courts, family courts and criminal courts. An amendment to the Mexican Constitution was passed in 2024, introducing significant chang- es to the judicial system, although they do not modify the procedural rules. Before the reform, it was necessary to follow a career path within the judiciary in order to become a judge in Mexico, and to pass the knowledge tests in competitive processes. Judges will now be appointed by popular election. This will imply a replacement of the current judges and justices, with the tran- sition starting in 2025 and to be completed by 2027. The secondary legislation was published on 15 October 2024, establishing additional guidelines for the judicial election. However, due to the magnitude of the changes, it is expected that additional regulations will be published.
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